Chandigarh University Launches 3-Month 'SANDBOX Residential Program' During AI Fest 2026; To Boost Startup Ecosystem in North India

'AI Fest-2026': Chandigarh University Launches 'Centre of Excellence in Digital Marketing' With 'Earn While Learn' Model

"Commitment Breeds Outcomes, SANDBOX Residential Program Will Accelerate Go-to-Market Stage of Startups," says Jai Inder Singh Sandhu, Managing Director, Chandigarh University

CHANDIGARH, India, Feb. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Chandigarh University today launched a 90-day SANDBOX Residential Program under which top 30 of 300 startups who are making a pitch during its three-day AI Fest 2026 -- being held at CU campus on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi -- will be provided mentorship and resources on a single platform to help accelerate their go-to-market (GTM) stage in three domains – AI, Deeptech and Media.

Strengthening its innovation network further, Chandigarh University also launched a Centre of Excellence in Digital Marketing operating on an 'earn while learn' model. The Centre will allow students to work on live industry projects and consultancy assignments while gaining hands-on experience with AI-powered digital tools. It aims to evolve into a multidisciplinary global hub for enterprise-led learning, innovation and digital excellence.

The portal for SANDBOX was launched by Jai Inder Singh Sandhu, Managing Director, Chandigarh University during the second day of the AI Fest today in the presence of Himeesh Madaan, Business Owner, Him-eesh Madaan Training Solutions, Ganesh Prasad S, Co-Founder and COO, Think School, Neeraj Walia, Technical Lead | Content Creator, Yellow.ai, Nivedan Rathi, Founder, Future & AI, Dr Archana Gaur Sharma, Senior Scientist, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland, Manish Swami, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, First AI Consultancy Services, Dr Bhanu Pratap Singh Saluja, Director, Robotic Arthroplasty Center of Excellence, Ashish Chadha, Group CEO, North-Park Group of Hospitals, Vijayalakshmi, Ed. CEO Super Specialty Park Hospitals, Amit Singhal, General Partner, Indicorn Angels, Fluid Ventures, and Realtime (RTAF), Jimish Kapadia, Co-Founder, Growth Sense/Growth91, Pulkit Mehrotra, Vice President, Unicorn India Ventures, Taranjeet Singh, Founder and CEO, Surge AI, Sanjib Biswas, Partner, Group Engineering Manager, Microsoft, Vishnu Gogula, Principal PM Manager, Microsoft, Bhargav Muthur Ramachandran, Co-Founder, Intellikar, Ayush Jain, Principal - Investments and Finance, Multiply Venture, Dr Suman Jyoti Deka, Co-Founder and CEO, Lajawab, Sameer Shaikh, Co-Founder, FundEnable, Dr Manish Kumar Leela, Founding Director, Compositec Greensol and Anuj Agarwal, Owner, ColliseumTalents. 

On launch of SANDBOX Residential Program, Jai Inder Singh Sandhu said "Unlike traditional programs that spread mentorship and resources across multiple cohorts, SANDBOX Residential Program will operate on a singular principle: 'Commitment Breeds Outcomes'. By requiring co-founders and entire teams to be physically present and fully dedicated to their ventures, SANDBOX is the Founders Space. The 90-day residential environment which will be provided under this residency program has been designed to compress the typical 12-18-month seed-to-series journey into a period of radical acceleration through three core mechanisms: AI, Agentic AI and Niche micro sectors," he said.

"As a transformative cohort-building initiative, the Sandbox Residency Program aims to identify, mentor and scale promising startups from idea stage to market-ready enterprises. Applications for the program have opened with the lunch of SANDBOX portal today and it will remain open for registrations for 45 days enabling startups nationwide to apply. This residency program will provide comprehensive incubation support, including expert mentoring, structured handholding, seed funding facilitation, website development assistance and guidance on availing financial support under national startup initiatives," Sandhu added.

AI Fest–2026, conceived as a premier national platform to accelerate AI-driven entrepreneurship, features three flagship initiatives — CU InnovFest 2026, Campus Tank and Sandbox seamlessly integrating ideation, incubation and commercialization.

The festival is hosting over 35 competitions across artificial intelligence and emerging technology domains, drawing participation from more than 1,000 teams from India and abroad. With over 10,000 students representing 200+ universities and colleges, the event has emerged as one of the largest academic AI congregations in the country. Backed by a prize pool exceeding Rs 1 crore, winning teams will receive cash awards and certificates of distinction. Participants will also gain access to globally recognized certifications from SAS Institute, with certification benefits valued at over Rs 1 crore.

Participating in a panel discussion during the Day-2 of AI Fest on 'AI Engineered Reality' Dr Archana Sharma, Pravasi Bhartiya Awardee 2023 by President of India, Head Relations International Organisations at CERN, Principal Scientist at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research at Geneva, Switzerland) said, "AI is a catalyst which is accelerating the pace at which the world is moving."

"We are using AI every single day from the morning alarm to drive to your destination and then optimizing your own productivity. We see a huge potential in India on how collaborative science can take this forward for improving quality of the societal benefit, reduce the time for research and then exploit all the tools that are coming out from the cutting edge and bleeding edge of science and technology. National Quantum Mission of India will rapidly multiply the rate at which the country is moving forward. So, AI plus quantum will crunch all the number crunching that we can do in minutes which would take months or years before. So, students today there is a great opportunity to be at the leading edge of these developments as 30% of GDP of the United States is coming from India. CEOs of Leading companies are from India," she added.

Dr. Bhanu Pratap Singh Saluja, Director of Robotic Arthroplasty Centre of Excellence said, "Human touch is always going to be there because even to get a surgery done from a robot, it's the surgeon who finalizes the particular algorithm fed in the robot that are correct or not. Robotic surgery is very good in precision, accuracy, and perfection in outcomes because it leads to lesser blood loss, minimum soft tissue injury, maximum outcome, and rehabilitation less. These are all the good features of the robot. I will still say that any surgeon who is going to perform a robotic surgery has to have an experience doing it manually. Because getting acquainted with your patient is very important and that is what gives the human touch. When human touch is attached to AI intelligence, it gives accurate and perfect results. The patient satisfaction score goes to the next level," he added.

Vishnu Gogula, Principal PM Manager, Microsoft, said, "The only durable skill today is the desire to keep learning. Every technological revolution in the industrial age, computers, internet didn't make humans obsolete. It pushed us to evolve. It's not a question of whether AI replaces humans. It's about whether we evolve. If you're a student today in medicine, engineering or any field, stay updated. As long as you keep adapting, you will remain relevant. AI doesn't eliminate humans. It shifts value upward from execution to orchestration and governance." On agentic products he said, "GPU shortages and slow chip manufacturing remain major bottlenecks, alongside challenges in cooling and energy. But as always, human ingenuity will overcome these constraints."

Ganesh Prasad, Founder, Think School, said, "If I were starting today in the AI era, I wouldn't change the fundamentals. The tools have evolved from just Google to platforms like Gemini and Midjourney, but values build businesses, not tools. AI can enhance value but cannot replace thinking. The tools have changed but the formula has not learn, act, fail, improve. Simply adding AI everywhere doesn't create innovation. There are three core skills AI cannot replace, communication, project management and people management. If you can't articulate your thoughts, you can't lead, sell or even use AI properly. College isn't a platform to succeed; it's a platform to fail safely. Build something, sell something, organize events. Try repeatedly. Fail often to learn fast."

Himeesh Madaan, Business Owner, Him-eesh Madaan Training Solutions said, "AI can accelerate execution, but it cannot replace human understanding. You can use tools, you can produce 30 reels a month, podcasts, long videos but if you are not solving real problems or reflecting real emotions, you won't build a loyal community. Views can be bought with tactics, trust cannot. When it comes to founders and high performers, one thing is common they don't overthink. They think and act."

About Chandigarh University

Chandigarh University is a NAAC A+ Grade University and QS World Ranked University. This autonomous educational institution is approved by UGC and is located near Chandigarh in the state of Punjab. It is the youngest university in India and the only private university in Punjab to be honoured with A+ Grade by NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council). CU offers more than 109 UG and PG programs in the field of engineering, management, pharmacy, law, architecture, journalism, animation, hotel management, commerce, and others. It has been awarded as The University with Best Placements by WCRC.

Website address: https://www.cuchd.in/

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2917315/Sandbox_launch_CU.jpg